


Guys Like Us

by UpsideAround



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz
Genre: College, Gen, Light Angst, Post-Squip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-19
Updated: 2017-06-19
Packaged: 2018-11-16 04:55:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11246736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UpsideAround/pseuds/UpsideAround
Summary: Jeremy was past high school. He made it.So why did everything feel so much worse?





	Guys Like Us

**Author's Note:**

> So this was supposed to be a continuation of the series "A Disk That Skips" but I think it fits better as a stand-alone

Jeremy flopped down onto his small twin-sized bed. His room was dark, his roommate was asleep, but Jeremy couldn't sleep.

He’d tried pacing his room, he’d tried playing games on his phone, he’d tried laying in silence. Nothing had been able to give him escape from every emotion storming in his body.

College was supposed to be fun. College was supposed to be new. College was supposed to be a fresh start and a new beginning, but Jeremy couldn’t let go.

High school seemed like an eternity ago. He was already forgetting his favorite teachers, who was in his classes, and why the gossip chain mattered.

Everything had gone by in a flash. One minute, he’s laughing with Michael for applying to Northwestern University, and the next minute they’re staring in shock at his acceptance letter. One minute ago, he couldn’t believe he was going to graduate in a couple of months. Now, it all seemed like a dream.

Hell, no one was sure if Jake was going to graduate, but with a little tutoring from Michael and Rich, they got his English grade up to a solid C.

Jeremy hadn’t talked to Jake since graduation.

It was his second week at college, and everything just hit him all at once. He was, for the first time, really, truly, alone. His dad wasn’t there to make fun of him for drinking directly out of the milk jug. There was no Jake, no Chloe, and no Brooke. Now, Jeremy went to classes in rooms full of strangers, and he watched as the cliques grew tighter every day, while Jeremy got lost in the background.

There was no Rich, nobody he could talk to about everything that happened Junior year. I mean, Jeremy was mostly past it, but if he ever told anyone about the whole SQUIP incident, they would think he was absolutely nuts. Knowing that he could never be completely honest about his past only made making friends a whole lot harder. Not that he could blame them, it honestly sounded crazy when he talked about it with Rich, and Rich was the one that told him about the SQUIPs in the first place.

In college, there was no Michael. Michael had been steadfast for as long as Jeremy could remember, and now Jeremy had to figure out how to balance on his own. They had a special kind of bond that only came through the both of them being outcasts in the school. Even though he and Michael had never fit in with the popular kids, they were close with each other.

Now, Jeremy was utterly alone.

He could use a voice in his head right about now.

_No, that’s a stupid thought_ , he corrected himself immediately.

God, Jeremy hadn’t thought about the SQUIP in awhile now. He still carried a small bottle of Mountain Dew Red with him, but it was habit at this point. Maybe he was being paranoid, but he couldn’t risk it.

Except right now, Jeremy was sorely tempted to steal a can of Mountain Dew out of his roommate’s refrigerator and drink the whole thing. If he really wanted, he only had to step over and grab a can of green Mountian Dew and he would have that voice back in his head. A voice that told him what to do.

Despite all the awful things that happened, Jeremy couldn’t deny that he wanted something to tell him what he needed to do. Where he needed to go. He didn’t want to feel lost in his own life anymore.

Jeremy’s phone lit up, buzzing loudly on his desk. Jeremy jumped at the noise, but picked it up.

Michael’s face smiled at him in his caller ID photo. Jeremy relaxed and answered the call.

“Hey,” Jeremy said.

“Hey,” Michael said.

Silence fell for a moment, neither of them wanting to talk about what was really on their minds.

Jeremy coughed slightly. “What do you know, college isn’t everything you cracked it up to be.”

Michael laughed. Jeremy held the phone closer to his ear. “I’m surprised you’re still up.”

Jeremy sighed. “Can’t sleep. Homesick, I guess,” he whispered, not wanting to wake up his roommate.

“Yeah.” Michael paused. “I can’t sleep either.”

“What’s up with you?” Jeremy said, sitting criss-cross on his bed.

Jeremy heard Michael sigh heavily. “I have three essays due tomorrow and I’m waiting for them to write themselves.”

Jeremy found himself smiling. “Well, I’m not the one who applied to Northwestern, Mister too-good-for-state-schools.”

Jeremy heard Michael scoff through the phone. “I didn’t think I’d actually get in!”

“Sure.” Jeremy paused. “How’re your student loans coming?”

“Oh, I should hit you with my textbook for that one, Heere.”

Jeremy grinned into the phone. “You wouldn’t.”

“I wish I could. Then we could be in the same state for at least a few minutes.”

Jeremy gave Michael an exaggerated gasp. “Michael Mell, are you being mushy? Should I be worried?”

Michael scoffed. “Don’t worry about me. Take care of yourself. I should probably get back to my work now, though.”

Jeremy exhaled. “Yeah. Good luck on that. Go kick college’s ass.”

A soft beep sounded in his ear, indicating the end of the call. Jeremy’s phone dimmed, leaving him in the dark once again.

His phone buzzed.

_New Text Message from Michael: I do miss you. Don’t let everything get to you, and don’t do anything stupid._

Jeremy responded immediately.

_I miss you too, thanks for calling. And when have I ever done anything stupid?_

He laughed at his own joke before turning his phone off and laying it on his desk. He turned over and lied down in his bed that still managed to feel foreign.

He pressed his hands over his eyes and tried to convince himself that everything would be alright. Hearing Michael's voice had made the knot in his chest tighter than ever. 

He had conquered high school, and college was just the next level. Life goes on.

What was it that Rich had written in his yearbook?

_Jeremy, you know what your problem was? Why you couldn’t be popular? It’s not because you didn’t have some manipulative computer in your head, and it’s not because of whatever reasons the SQUIP told you. You never put yourself out there. Think about it—you gained new friends when you started signing up for clubs. Well, only one club, but still._

_Don’t do that in college. You don’t have to change who you are, but you have to let people know who you are. Good luck, text me anytime._

Life goes on. Jeremy might never stop missing everyone back home, and he might never get over the SQUIP incident completely. That was okay.

_Don’t let everything get to you, and don’t do anything stupid._ God, Michael knew Jeremy too well.

Jeremy rolled over and shut his eyes. He’d be sure to tell Michael that in the morning, but now he could sleep with those words on his mind. 

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are greatly appreciated! You can also find me at upsidearound.tumblr.com


End file.
